Triangle Dissolution
by ShellSueD
Summary: After the events in Hawaii in book 18, Stephanie decides she's done with men all together. Fortunately, the guys in her life might have something to say about that.


_JE owns the rights to anything familiar - all mistakes are mine and my apologies for those - I did not spend nearly enough time editing this._

Happy Birthday _**LilyGhost**_ , I didn't think I'd ever get this done in time for your b-day but since it's still your birthday here and technically still is on your coast too (barely), I'm going to say I made it! I hope you had a great day today.

* * *

There was a small part of me that knew I'd crossed the line of satisfying a simply curiosity to becoming a full-fledged stalker and yet here I was, doing exactly what I swore to myself over margaritas I was going to stop doing. In hindsight, drinking the _entire_ pitcher might not have been the best idea.

I spent a significant amount of time trying to justify my exploits and repeatedly told myself it wasn't really my fault. I mean, anyone would be doing the same thing I was and if I didn't feel like such an idiot about it, I might confirm that fact with a few people.

Okay, it was probably _mostly_ my fault. I could have done the mature, adult thing and simply asked one - or both of them - what was going on. It sure would have saved me a lot of sleepless nights and stress-filled days, not to mention the gas money I was forking over to drive my piece of shit Ford Explorer all over town. Except I never have been the kind of person who takes the simplest or most logical action to these types of situations.

I shifted in my seat, the cracked and stained leather sticking to my bare thighs because of the sweltering August heat and the fact the air-conditioning in my car was busted, and adjusted the focus of the binoculars as I sucked in mouthful of icy-cold Coke.

If I hadn't been so focused on my prey, I would have seen the size sixteen woman, squeezed into a size ten outfit, before she scared the crap out of me and I spilled the soda I'd been enjoying all over my lap. And if it wasn't so sticky, I might not have minded the cooling off it gave me.

" _Jeez_ _Lula_! What the hell are you doing?" I set down the binoculars and scrambled to find some napkins.

"That should be my question to you," she replied, settling into the passenger seat and pulling the door closed. "You on a stakeout? Why didn't you call me? You know I love stakin' shit out."

I rolled my eyes while I tried to clean up the mess. "You _hate_ stakeouts. You get bored and we end up getting noticed when you get out of the car or you talk me into leaving to get food and the skip gets away."

"Huhn. Well that was the _old_ Lula. I'm turning over a new leaf and the first order of business is to kick ass at stakeouts. Who are we watching?" She snatched my binoculars off the dash and put them up to her eyes before I could yank them from her hands. I felt the flush of embarrassment heat my cheeks and my stomach twisted into a knot knowing I was going to have to admit what I'd been doing. _I_ _was_ _ **so**_ _not ready for that._

Her body went still and I wished for the earth to open up and swallow me whole.

" _Holy shit,"_ she breathed after what seemed an eternity and then she slowly lowered the binoculars. Her eyes were comically bugging out of her head like a cartoon character. "How…what…why…?"

She was as speechless as I'd been the first time I saw it so I could relate. I grabbed the binoculars from her and tossed them into the back. "What are you even doing here?" I demanded, ignoring her stupefied stuttering.

"My baby needed new shoes." She jerked her thumb behind us and I glanced in the rear view mirror, seeing the tire shop. "I was waiting for them to finish and spotted your car. Don't often see your white ass in this part of town so I came to see what you were up to….what _are_ you doing? And why are those two together?"

I didn't have a reasonable answer to the first and I had no idea about the second so I didn't say anything at all.

We sat together for several long moments, staring at the café, and although I knew better, I hoped the silence meant she'd given up.

"I thought he had trackers and shit on you."

I blew out a sigh of resignation. "He does."

"So he knows you're sittin' here watching him?"

 _God, I hope not._ "I ditched the trackers."

She raised a skeptical eyebrow and I couldn't blame her. I'd tried once before and missed four of the dozen planted in various articles of clothing or accessories I owned. "I'm sure," I insisted, not really sure at all, but I'd borrowed Vinnie's bug sweeper and found the two on my car and the ones in the soles of my boots.

There had been fourteen in all and even though I'd located each of them, I took extra precautions today by not bringing a handbag. I also made a trip to the mall and bought my current outfit - shorts, a tank top and new underwear - completing the look with a cheap pair of flip flops from the convenience store. The vehicle bugs were currently residing in the glove box of Big Blue, sitting in the garage at my Mom's. I'd swing by and put them back on my own car when I eventually gave up for the day and went home.

"Hmm," Lula muttered and peered again at the building where the two men in my life were currently having lunch. _Together_. "Do you think they're talking about you?" She asked a beat later.

A couple of weeks ago I would have said no. Under no circumstances would they be talking about me without it escalating in to a fight where one or both of them would end up with stitches or broken bones but now….now was obviously a different story.

"They could be working a job together or Ranger could be passing along information about a case Joe is on," I speculated, avoiding her actual question.

"Except?" She challenged, knowing I was grasping at straws. I let out another sigh and reached into the back seat where I'd dumped the binoculars and brought them back to my eyes.

"Except they would probably rather be eaten alive by fire ants than be within twenty feet of each other." I adjusted the focus and sighed again, but in a different way, when Ranger raised a hand and pushed his hair off his face. He'd been growing it out and it was almost long enough to pull back into a short ponytail. It was sexy as hell and so was the bulging bicep peeking out of the sleeve of his shirt. I shifted in my seat, suddenly feeling hotter than I was and cursing the fact it had nothing to do with the weather.

I knew there was probably only one logical reason Ranger and Joe would be together and it had nothing to do with a job.

"Unless it has to do with you," Lula countered knowingly.

I exhaled slowly but didn't agree, though I did.

"Maybe they're working out a schedule," she suggested after her first try didn't get a response.

"A schedule for what?"

"For you. You know, who gets to be with you on what day. Maybe Ranger gets Mondays, Wednesday, and Fridays and Joe gets Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and then they can alternate Sundays."

My jaw fell open to my chest and I nearly dropped the binoculars when I whipped my head around to look at her. "That is _not_ what they're doing!" I insisted emphatically. "I'm not their toy to pass around…I'm not a…they're not… no. _Absolutely not_."

"Chill," Lula said with a laugh, "I was just messin' with you. I don't think either of those egos would be into sharing…would they?"

" _Christ,"_ I breathed and peered at the two men again. It didn't really matter if they were or not because _I_ wasn't - though my behavior the last few months might suggest otherwise. I knew I needed to do something about the stupid 'triangle' I'd gotten myself into and that's why two weeks ago I'd sworn off men all together… _all men_ …except here I was, spying on them. _Again_.

A gasp escaped when they stood at the same time and turned toward me. I dropped the binoculars and instinctively ducked down below the dash.

Lula laughed again from beside me and took her own look. "I don't think they can see us, and they're leaving," she let me know.

I inched back up in the seat and let out a breath of relief as they walked out of the building. They parted ways with a simple head nod and Lula and I stayed put until both vehicles were out of sight.

"Which one are we following?" She asked eagerly. "If it's Batman we better go before he vanishes like smoke."

"Too late, and I'm done. This is ridiculous," I muttered to myself and turned the key dangling from the ignition. It took three tries, but the engine finally caught and I looked at Lula, silently asking her if she was getting out.

"Hey, are you okay?" She queried sincerely.

Sighing yet again, I dropped my forehead onto the steering wheel. "It's complicated."

"Does this have anything to do with what went down in Hawaii - which you still won't talk about?"

Hawaii, God. _What a mess._ My eyes drifted to the faint tan line still visible on the ring finger of my left hand. "No," I lied and Lula snorted out a grunt of disbelief.

"Maybe it will help if you get it all out." Her phone buzzed inside her bag, momentarily distracting her. "My car is ready," she let me know after checking the text message. She popped open the door and slid out of the passenger seat. "I'm coming over later with chicken and reinforcements. You need some neutral opinions on your situation."

"You don't even know what my situation is and you've never been neutral about anything," I countered, knowing it wouldn't do any good.

"That's what the reinforcements are for." She shut the door and disappeared from view. Reinforcements for Lula meant Connie and both of them thought I was crazy for not jumping Ranger's bones every chance I got so they weren't going to be any help at all.

I put the car in gear and motored off to the Burg. After retrieving the trackers I'd left in the Buick and mooching lunch, I went home and fell onto my bed, face first, with a loud groan which bemoaned the disaster that is my life.

#######

#######

Obnoxious pounding on my door made my eyes open just enough to peer through tiny slits at the alarm clock next to my bed. It read just after nine in the morning and that's when I realized the pounding was coming from inside my head.

I squeezed them shut and rolled over, intent on trying to go back to sleep but the throbbing was too much and I really had to hit the bathroom. With a groan of pain, I pushed myself out of bed and staggered to my feet. My knees hurt with every step and when I made it to the toilet, I discovered why.

Both were skinned and scrapped all to shit and looked like they had bits of gravel or something else in them.

 _What the hell?_

I did my business, also realizing I was still wearing the clothes I'd had on last night and then took a look in the mirror. _Yikes_. My hair was a disaster, my mascara was smeared, making the dark circles under my eyes worse, and there were faint remnants of what was once pink lip gloss. I obviously wasn't at the top of my game and the sorry state of my appearance combined with the headache indicated too much alcohol consumption. Apparently I'd found a liquor store and drank the entire thing.

I scrubbed my face and tried to tame my hair before making my way out to the living room where the previous night's events played out in full living color on my couch.

Sally Sweet, Lula and Grandma Mazur were passed out in a tangled mess in various stages of undress. Lula's hot pink spandex skirt was riding so far up her thighs it could pass as a belt and one of her boobs had popped out of the too small top and was resting on Sally's bare and very very hairy chest. Luckily he still had on his cutoff jean shorts but his sparkly silver high-heeled shoes were sticking out the top of a half-empty bucket of fried chicken and he'd tied back his massive mop of curly black hair with the purple feather boa he'd arrived wearing last night. I thought he'd _also_ arrived wearing a shirt but it was nowhere to be seen.

Grandma, _thankfully_ , was still fully clothed in her lavender track suit but her rows of perfectly coiffed curls were in complete disarray and the lipstick Lula had told her matched her outfit was smeared across her right cheek. She was simultaneously snoring and drooling on the armrest of the couch, a half-full margarita glass clutched in her tiny, bony hand.

I sank into the armchair while bits and pieces of the previous night were starting to invade my memory.

Lula had shown up with Sally and Grandma, which was a surprise as I was expecting Connie, and coerced me into sharing the details about my pathetic love life and what had happened when Ranger and then Joe had shown up in Hawaii.

And by _coerced_ , I mean she gave me copious amounts of tequila and I spilled my guts.

I don't really remember everything I said or if they had any advice about what I should or shouldn't do regarding the situation because Vinnie had interrupted with a call about a skip that'd been eluding me for months and wanted me to go bring her in.

I was already drunk by the time he gave me the location where she'd been spotted but I went anyway, with Lula, Grandma and Sally as back up. None us were sober enough to really be of any use but with the confidence only alcohol can inspire we called a cab to pick us up and the driver was about as thrilled as the skip was about the adventure.

After a mild scuffle that ended with me on the ground in the parking lot of Pino's with banged up legs and Lula clocking the reluctant woman on the back of the head with her fully-loaded faux Louis Vuitton handbag, I was able to get her cuffed and taken to the station.

It wasn't my finest hour but I'd managed to get my man, so to speak. I just hope I could find the body receipt to turn in to Connie. What happened after that, I have no idea. Obviously we'd made it back to my apartment and I'd made it to my bed, but I my tequila addled brain can't remember those details.

Lula stirred on the couch, drawing my attention back to the three people in my apartment. She swatted at her exposed breast and then swatted it again, rousing Sally from slumber. "Whoa, what the hell, man? Those claws are sharp." He shoved Lula off him and rubbed at his chest where she'd left a scratch mark.

"Sorry, all that hair made it feel like a spider was crawling on me." She tucked herself back into her shirt, like this was a normal occurrence, and then Grandma woke up.

"What's going on?" She mumbled and managed to keep the leftover margarita from spilling out of the glass as she sat up. She took a sip of the now room temperature liquid and made a face. "This needs ice."

"I think we used all the ice," Lula said as she removed the shoes and dug around in the bucket of chicken, pulling out a drumstick and sinking her teeth into it.

"Bummer," Grandma said and pulled out her own drumstick. I decided not to mention it wasn't a good idea to eat meat that had been left out all night and clutched at my throbbing head when my phone rang. The machine clicked on right away and my Mother's shrill voice filled my small apartment.

"Stephanie, is your grandmother still with you? Her bed hasn't been slept in and she didn't show up for breakfast or church this morning. One of you better call me immediately because the whole neighborhood is talking about how the two of you assaulted some poor woman in a parking lot last night. Are you in jail? Am I gonna have to bail you out? What will people say if my daughter, not to mention own _mother,_ has been arrested? What am I supposed to –"

The machine cut her off, and we all breathed a sigh of relief.

Grandma grinned at me and then said, "Your mother seems a little uptight; she must be out of bourbon. I guess I better get home before she has a stoke."

"I'll drop you off on the way to my nail appointment," Lula offered and they both made moves to get up off the couch but were stopped by Sally's concerning comment.

"Wait, we can't go yet. Stephanie hasn't told us what they said after she called them last night."

"Oh yeah," Lula agreed and the three of them turned expectant faces my way.

I could feel the color draining from my face. I wouldn't have called either one of them, would I? I swore off all men and that included phone calls. "What do you mean?" I asked, the dread building in my chest at an alarming rate. "I didn't call anyone." _Please let me not have drunk-dialed Joe.._. _or Ranger. Oh God._

"Are you sure?" Grandma wanted to know. "Because you seemed pretty determined and we heard you talking after you went to your room."

"Yeah," Sally nodded in agreement, making his hair hair come loose from the the haphazard tie. "You said you were going to end the triangle once and for all and then you marched off to your room with your cell phone and we didn't see you again the rest of the night."

"What did Batman and Super Cop have to say?" Lula demanded and I tried not to go into full panic mode. I dug in the pocket of my shorts and retrieved my phone. Holding my breath, I clicked on recent calls and felt my stomach drop.

 _There they were_. Two outgoing calls, each lasting approximately one minute. _Holy hell_. What the fuck had I said?

I opened my mouth to respond to Lula but was stopped by the tumbling of my locks. Only one person entered my apartment that way and I froze in my chair with my heart beating wildly beneath my ribs.

Ranger came through the threshold as silently as a cat, drawing four sets of eyes to his location. Though he was probably surprised at the group gathered on my couch his face remained impassive as he took in the scene. He was dressed in SWAT gear, complete with a full utility belt and weaponry but my attention was on his hands, which held _the cure._ His unexpected presence both thrilled and terrified me.

Someone cleared their throat and then Sally said, "I think that's our cue to hit the bricks."

They headed out quickly after that, Grandma not even trying to cop a feel as she passed by and when they were gone, I found myself on the receiving end of a full-body Ranger scan, his eyes narrowing when they got to my knees. The next thing I knew I was being led to the kitchen and he was boosting me up onto the kitchen counter and retrieving my first aid kit from under the sink.

He studiously avoided my stare as he wet a towel with hot water from the tap and without a single word being uttered from either of us, he began to clean my mangled knees.

I let out a hiss when he scraped the wet towel over the cuts a second time, trying to remove all the embedded grit. He paused with it hovering over my leg as if waiting for permission to continue but he didn't look at me. Ranger hadn't really looked at me since we returned from Hawaii and right then I _really_ wanted him to. "I'm okay," I said quietly, hoping it would bring his head up. It didn't; he simply resumed cleaning the wounds in silence while I tried not to let the sudden rush of tears fall, wondering if things would ever stop being awkward between us, and attempting to forget I was the one who'd created the tension to begin with.

He finished the job and covered the now cleaned and disinfected area with some gauze and medical tape and then stepped back and leaned a hip against the opposite counter. I quit breathing when he finally let me see into the dark depths of his ever-assessing eyes. Of course they were completely guarded so I had no idea what was running through his head.

"You left me an.. _.interesting_ voicemail last night," he said softly and I tried to extract that memory from my head but the booze had destroyed any semblance of it.

"Oh?" I questioned, obviously stalling.

"Do you even remember what you said?"

"Ummm..."

The corners of his mouth gave a slight tilt in that annoying, smug little way - which is infuriatingly sexy as hell.

"Too bad, because I would have been _very_ interested in what that would entail." _Was he messing with me? It was impossible to tell most of the time._

I opened my mouth but only a breath escaped, as words were apparently no longer an option. Ranger lifted a brow and pulled out his phone.

"Do you want me to play it for you?"

My stomach twisted into a tight little ball. "You saved it?"

That got me almost a full smile. "It's going into a permanent file," he said, which did not make me feel better _at all_. I thought I might throw up any second. Sensing my distress, as he always could, Ranger grabbed the bag of McDonald's from the counter where he'd left it and pulled out the fries.

"Eat," he demanded and I shoved a few into my mouth, grateful for the distraction. I washed them down with the coke he handed me and then ate some more because I had no idea what to say, not that I ever did.

I ate slowly and silently and he watched me closely until all the fries and half of the coke was gone. "Feel better?" He wanted to know.

"Yes and no," I admitted, as I was no longer nauseous, but was still distraught over the voicemail I had no recollection of leaving.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Which part?"

"All of it." Since I wasn't sure what _all of it_ meant, I shrugged my shoulders.

"Will either of us enjoy the conversation?"

"Only one way to find out," he replied logically.

I sucked down the rest of the coke and then braced my shoulders as if that would help me deal and nodded my head. "Okay, let's do this."

Ranger started to talk but was halted by my door being opened by someone with a key. A second later, we were both looking at Joe holding what appeared to be a moving box.

He and Ranger shared a look I couldn't identify then they both turned to me.

"What's going on with you two?" I asked bluntly. "And what's with the box?"

Joe cut his eyes to Ranger again. "You haven't talked to her yet?"

"Was just about to when you showed up. Great timing, by the way."

I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not.

"I have my moments," Joe responded with a cocky grin and I could feel myself slipping into Rhino mode.

"Okay, what the hell is this? You two are being way too _chummy_. First all the lunches and now you're here in front of me and _not_ trying to kill each other and it's freaking me out!" I jumped down off the counter and started opening cupboards. I needed sugar.

"Wait, lunches?" Joe questioned Ranger as I found a half-empty package of Oreo's.

He lifted a shoulder. "She's been following us around for a while."

I almost choked on the cookie I'd shoved in my mouth. "You knew?" I cried out after managing to swallow.

" _Babe,"_ Ranger said and I think he might have even slightly rolled his eyes.

Joe laughed and I had to resist the urge to punch him in the throat. "Whoa," he said, holding up his hand when he got caught in my death glare. "No need to bring out the laser beams and I guess it will be easier now since you already know we've been meeting."

"What will be easier? I feel like you're both talking in riddles. Why have you been having secret meetings together and why are you here with a box of my stuff?" I'd peaked inside when I was scarfing down an Oreo.

"After the message you left last night, I figured you'd want your stuff…and your key." He dropped my house key into the box and slid it onto the counter.

Crap, I'd forgotten I called Joe too.

"You might have to refresh her memory," Ranger supplied. "She had a lot of tequila in her system at the time."

I shot my laser beams _his_ way as Joe pulled out his phone. He pressed a couple of buttons and I cringed when my voice sounded from the speaker phone.

" _Listen Joe…this has to end, this stupid triangle. I can't do it anymore. It's not fair to me or you or Ra…it's not fair and it just needs to be over, okay?"_

I was surprised at the steadiness of my tone since, as Ranger so _helpfully_ pointed out, I was full of tequila.

" _No more,"_ I went on. _"I do love you, you know, but…no more triangle. Give Bob a kiss for me and Joe? Please don't hate me."_

Joe slipped his phone back into his pocket and I, per usual, didn't know what to say but both of their eyes on me was making me want to crawl into a hole and never come out. I was embarrassed and sad and a little pissed that he played the message in front of Ranger.

He and Ranger shared another look and I felt the tears starting….until Joe said, "Since Ranger and I had already worked out a schedule to share time with you, it was a little disappointing to get that message."

"What? Oh my god. That's why you've been hanging out together? What is _wron_ g with you? I can't even….holy crap Lula was right…and what? You just thought I'd be okay with that?" I was bouncing my eyes between the two of them, trying to decide which one I was going to strangle first.

Ranger laid a strong hand on my shoulder, making me jump. "He's joking, Stephanie, calm down."

"Really?" I swung my eyes back to Joe. "You must be doing it wrong because that is _so_ not funny!"

I shrugged off Ranger's hand when Joe laughed again and couldn't keep from raising my voice. "Outside! Now!" I raised a stiff arm, pointing at the door and stormed after him when he wisely followed my command. We were going to have the rest of this conversation in private.

Joe was still smiling when I slammed my door shut and turned to him, arms crossed over my chest. "We're breaking up and you're laughing?"

"Only to keep from crying, Cupcake," he said, finally dropping the grin. "I don't want to break up."

"Then what the hell are you doing here with a box of my stuff?"

He let out a breath and ran his fingers through his already messy hair. "C'mon, Steph. Let's, for once, admit the truth. You and I both know there is no future for us, not as long as Ranger is in the picture...and maybe even if he wasn't."

He was probably right but that didn't mean I was ready to admit it. "So we're done, just like that?"

Joe sighed and tucked my hair behind my ears. "Are you telling me you don't want to be?"

I couldn't say that and it filled my heart with emotion I didn't know if I could contain. Joe had been a part of my life for so long I wasn't sure I was ready for it be over.

"Yeah," he finally said with a hint of sadness when I didn't respond. "I love you, Stephanie, but we want completely different things and I don't see that changing…this has been a long time coming, don't you think?"

A tear escaped and Joe caught it with his thumb. "What were you and Ranger really meeting about?"

"Avoidance, huh?" he called me out and I shrugged.

Joe shook his head and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "It started out with some information he was passing along about a case I've been working and then after Hawaii, when you cut us both off, we decided we'd better bury the hatchet if either of us had a chance of being in your life anymore."

"Seriously? You were willing to do that…?" And there went the tears again.

"For you? I think we'd probably do just about anything, but then I got your message last night and knew it just wasn't in the cards, at least for you and me."

"Wait, we're not even going to be friends anymore? I don't…I don't want that, Joe."

"Me either. We'll stay friends, Steph, but I think we probably need a break for a while…" He trailed off, looking pointedly at my door and bringing the man waiting twenty feet away back to the front of my mind.

I swiped at more tears and Joe pulled me into his arms. The hug was brief as was the kiss he planted on my cheek before leaving me and saying what kept me standing alone in the hallway for a good long while before I was able to go back inside.

" _I told him I was going to back off and if he's smart…he'll take advantage of my generosity."_

Ranger hadn't moved from his spot against the counter when I eventually returned but his head was bent over his phone as he texted someone or checked the balance of his multiple bank accounts or plotted the invasion of a small country.

Sliding into the spot across from him brought his eyes to mine. "Joe's gone," I stated the obvious.

"Permanently?" He asked carefully.

"Yeah."

"How do you feel about that?"

"Better than I thought I would." I was only mildly surprised to realize that was the truth.

Ranger put his phone away and pushed off the counter. "Good."

"Good?"

" _Very_ good." He took a step, closing the gap between us.

"Why?"

"Because, now I can do this without you getting an attack of the guilty conscious."

His lips were on mine before I could form a response, sending shivers of warmth into all the good places. Just when I was about at the point of wanting to rip his clothes off he backed away and I tried not to whimper at the loss.

"Still off men?" He said with a slight smile as he leaned back against the counter.

"That was mean," I replied and he gave me his full smile.

"I think we should discuss the message you left before this goes any further."

 _Oh God._ "Why? What did I say?"

He crossed his arms over his expansive chest, making his biceps bulge and I tried not to stare.

"First you told me how you wanted to get me naked, and then you described, in _explicit_ detail, what you intended to do to me once I was free of my clothes…"

I felt my cheeks turning pink and had to fight the urge to run from the room. "That, ah…that doesn't sound like anything I would say..."

"I sincerely hope that isn't true," he said, "but in this case, you're right." Ranger retrieved his phone and played me the voice mail and I once again cringed as my drunken rambling filled the room.

 _"I made a decision,"_ I boldly exclaimed. _"I can't do this anymore. The whole you, me and Joe triangle thing…I realize it was of my own making but I'm done. The truth is I'm in love with you and it's not fair to keep hanging on to Joe because you're not...I just...I want you,_ _ **only**_ _you, even though I know I can't have you because of your stupid, idiotic no relationships bullshit, but I still do. I want you in any way I can have you but I'm done with the back and forth stuff...I'm just done and...I miss you. How pathetic is that? I push you away this time and now I miss you...I...will you come see me?"_

He cut off the message, or that was the end of it and set the phone on the counter. I was pretty sure my entire body was flushed red with embarrassment but I held my ground and held his penetrating stare until he broke the silence that followed the playing of the voicemail.

"Would you have said any of that to my face or if you'd been sober?"

 _No._ "Maybe," I hedged, "but only if..."

"Only if what?"

"Only if I knew being yours might be an option." My breath stalled as he moved back into my personal space, sliding his hand against my cheek.

"It's an option. It's _always_ been an option."

At my doubtful expression, he clarified. "You needed to be willing to let go of Morelli first, which you finally are, before it could be."

I felt my eyes narrowing of their own accord. "Are you saying if I'd ended things with Joe a long time ago we would have already been..."

"I think it's a good idea to concentrate on _now_ , and not what could or should have been in the past." He leaned in and graced me with another mind-bending kiss until we were interrupted by the vibrating of his phone. "Unfortunately _now_ is going to have to wait a few more hours. I have a meeting in ten."

He stepped away but I grabbed a fistful of his shirt and pulled him back. "Wait a second," I said. "Just to clarify, we're...I mean...you and me...we're gonna be..."

"Yes," he interrupted my babbling.

"For real, no questions or doubts or...how is this even going to work?"

"I have no idea, Babe," he admitted, "but it will. It's going to take some effort and a bit of compromise on both sides but we'll figure it out."

"No more triangle, just me and you?"

"Me and you. If Morelli wants to keep breathing, he'll respect your decision and he'll respect whatever you and I build together from here on out."

Ranger's phone buzzed again, probably Tank getting antsy, and he kissed me one last time before leaving.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," he promised before disappearing and even knowing I'd probably be hearing that line more than I'd ever want to, I was smiling when the door closed.

My heart felt lighter than it had in months and though I was sad at the end of one relationship, the hope of what this new one might become made me glad I'd finally dissolved the triangle I never should have let myself build to begin with.


End file.
